


The Writing on the Wall

by Poppycock_and_Horsefeathers



Category: The Adventure Zone (Podcast)
Genre: Character Study, Gen, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-08-03
Updated: 2017-08-03
Packaged: 2018-12-10 17:43:48
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,360
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11696679
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Poppycock_and_Horsefeathers/pseuds/Poppycock_and_Horsefeathers
Summary: Taako takes some time to think after his magic lessons with Angus. (Takes place in the time of Episode 40, no spoilers present for any following episodes)





	The Writing on the Wall

 

Taako ushered into his personal quarters, robes rippling behind him in a flurry as he tossed the umbra staff onto his bed and sat beside it. Angus, the little gem, had quickly forgiven the macaroon massacre in light of the mysterious letters written upon the wall, but something about the incident burned deeper than Taako could understand. As the amateur magical boy ran off with his nose in his notebook, Taako had sat in the cafeteria for an uncomfortable amount of time simply staring at the letters L, U, and P. His mind restlessly grasped at their meaning for many frustrating moments before seeking the comfort of his own abode. Sliding the staff into his hands now, he tried to study it with the same intensity of his unexplainable focus on the matter, hoping to find any answers to his unknown questions in its canopy's rich folds. The more he tried to focus, however, his mind only became more… fuzzy. 

Sighing, he flopped backwards on his bed, staff in one hand, averting his attention to the various sparkling, magical knick knacks and whatsits suspended from his ceiling. Rather than make up solutions to problems he didn’t even know how to describe, he began to think of what he did know. The umbra staff wasn’t a stranger to independent acts, of course. Often times, it seemed to lend an incredible hand in spells meant for foes beyond Taako’s abilities, and whoever made it certainly crafted advanced emergency self defense measures. But that was all Taako considered the staff until that point: advanced. Not sentient or possessed, but well designed. 

Twirling his finger as to swirl the floating decorations, he began to chew on the inside of his lip. What if the staff  _ was  _ possessed? Maybe its power isn’t stolen from fallen magic users but channeled as their souls grow stronger and stronger in their umbrella prison. One day, when he goes to pick it up or cast a life saving spell, maybe it will turn on him and finally rip itself from his grasp for good. Maybe this last incident was truly the writing on the wall- a warning that next time he won’t be able to redirect it’s spells. But what, he thought, was L U P? 

Although his mind began feeling muddled the more he thought about it, the inability to grasp its meaning brought him the distinct feeling of having a word on the tip of his tongue. It was like remembering words to a song you hadn’t heard in years, only to completely forget it’s name before you have a chance to find it again. Like walking into a room not recalling why you went, or knowing you read the answer to a test question only moments before it started.

His gut suddenly began to feel hollow as L U P ran through his head. There was a weight on his chest, now, aching for something he did not know, and he was suddenly keen to the emptiness in the suite as Merle and Magnus had left to do their own things. He was alone here, in his room, the infinite space from there to another life seeming to want to swallow him up, just as it felt when he dared to look at the world below from the Bureau’s windows.  _ Was this what it felt like _ , he wondered,  _ to the poor soul I took this staff from? Did they just die there, trapped, looking for whatever treasures they must have been looking for before succumbing to a lonesome demise?  _

The metallic warmth of blood twinged his tongue, telling him he had chewed a little too long on his lip. Clutching the staff to his chest, he tightened his grip and glared at the ceiling above to begin grounding himself.  _ It had to be the macaroons _ , he mustered,  _ you’re thinking too much about the past, you shouldn’t have used the spell. Look where it got you.  _ The memories of his childhood and TV days hadn’t brought up such a sense of grief in years, but for his own sake, he was willing to dismiss it and chalk it up to a nasty mash of subconscious drama and complex magic enchantment. It was moments like these he wished he still had the comfort of cooking to take his mind off of the worst of days. 

Just as his mind was about to wander again, he felt a heavy hum against his chest. Tugging at the twine around his neck, he procured his stone of far speach from under his shirt. Activating its magic, he made sure to take a deep breath before speaking. 

“Hello?” There was a bit of static in response, but soon a familiar voice came through crystal clear. 

“Taako? It’s me, Kravitz…do you have a moment? Is this a bad time?” His voice seemed to falter, unsure about how to carry the conversation. For all his worry, Taako found it endearing. 

“No, no, not at all. I may be a busy guy, but I can always find the time to squeeze you in between our suicide missions. Go ahead, shoot! What’s on your mind, my man?” Taako cringed a little at himself, thinking he was rambling a little much to compensate for his near breakdown moments ago. For all of Taako’s worry, however, Kravitz found it nothing but charming. 

“Ah, you’re too kind. Well. Let’s see, uh.. Well, our last conversation was quite informative, but I was wondering if perhaps you’d like to go over some of it with more detail... preferably in person? The stones are sufficient, but maybe it would be better if we got to know each other a little better considering we’ve been discussing your life in intimate detail...” Kravitz’s punctuated the request with a faint laugh, awkward but determined.

Taako, caught off guard, took a moment to process. Despite Kravitz’s hesitation and pauses, to Taako his voice had came through as subtle and smooth as butter on toast. When Kravitz laughed, he felt an inkling of blood rush to his cheeks. Maybe the grim reaper didn’t realize he was making a move, but hell if Taako Taaco was going to let this chance go. 

“You know what? That sounds great!” Taako sprung forward into a sitting position, mind now reeling with impromptu date ideas.

“You know what? There’s this nice little uh……”  _ Think, Taako, think! _ “ winery slash pottery sesh sort of place here in the HQ. I haven't been,”  _ because I didn’t have a date _ , “but I hear they have great taste.” 

There was a short pause that went agonizingly long for Taako before Kravitz finally spoke. 

“That sounds…. actually quite lovely. Listen, the Raven Queen is calling for me, now, but we’ll work out the details later, yes?” 

“Of course, of course, go on, do your whole grim reaper thing, I won’t stop you.” Taako’s shoulders sagged a little knowing he had to go so soon. He thought he was getting on a bit of a roll with this fast thinking thing. 

“Until next time, then,” Kravitz said. 

“Yeah, catch you later.”

The stone of farspeach went silent, leaving Taako once again to his own devices. The desolation his previous problem had brought wasn’t completely gone, but he would be lying if he said he didn’t feel better. For reasons he couldn’t yet comprehend, there was undoubtedly a missing piece in his heart that this mystery seemed to stir around, but with the thought of Kravitz’s company, the pain seemed to ease away at least for a little while. 

Taako began to think himself mad, feeling soft for Death himself, but then again, he hadn't expected him to be so handsome. Though their conversations often ran short due to both of their jobs being quite demanding and life threatening, they always felt easy despite any awkwardness and in this moment, a harbinger of comfort. It was a risk on his heart’s part, and for all Kravitz knew, it was simply a formal meeting, but for now it was all Taako needed to put his mind at rest and close his eyes a while for a well deserved break. 

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading! I felt like writing something a little different, so I appreciate any audience.


End file.
